This is the moment when Japan's male figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu was showered with Winnie the Pooh teddies by fans after winning the men's short program at the Winter Olympics in South Korea.

The 2014 Olympic gold medalist and 2017 world champion has just returned from a two month long absence following a foot injury in a November training accident and was greeted by the crowd at the Gangneung Ice Arena with hundreds of mini-flags featuring the Japanese rising sun.

The 23-year-old, who earned the top score on Thursday and nearly equaled his own world record, was given a tribute of dozens of Winnie the Pooh bears, his trademark because he collects them, thrown by the adoring crowd in celebration of his victory.

In the heartwarming video, the defending Olympic champion can be seen graciously bowing to a huge standing ovation as the bears cascaded around him when he finished his skate.

The Japanese star, who has a games-record of 111.68 points, is said to have hit every element of a highly difficult program with precision and grace despite having lost training time due to the injury.

'I just wanted to show everyone I'm back, I'm here,' Hanyu said.

A heart-throb in his country, he began carrying around a tissue box that was embedded in A.A. Milne's cute character in 2010.

The 2014 Olympic gold medalist and 2017 world champion has just returned from a two month long absence following a foot injury

The 23-year-old, who earned the top score on Thursday and nearly equaled his own world record, was given a tribute of dozens of Winnie the Pooh bears

The tribute of dozens of Winnie the Pooh bears, his trademark because he collects them, were thrown by the adoring crowd in celebration of his victory.

When Hanyu skated, he would arrange his Pooh Bear to make sure it had a good view of him, and he brought it with him to news conferences.

His association with the doll took on a life of it's own and even though Olympic sponsorship rules said that he couldn't bring his beloved companion to the rink, his fans made sure that their hero with the shaky ankle got the praise he deserved.

Hanyu's coach said that Pooh had been placed beside him at other competitions and that backstage there were bags and bags of the stuffed animals that fans would routinely hurl at him during events.

The Japanese star, a heart throb in his country, received a huge standing ovation as the bears cascaded around him when he finished his skate

The avalanche of the dolls has also become something of a skating advantage for Hanyu as the skaters scheduled to perform after him must wait for the ice to be cleared.

The champion skater donates them to children in the area surrounding whatever arena has hosted the shower — in this case, Gangneung and PyeongChang.

'I'm not quite sure how this got started,' a bewildered Hanyu told a news conference earlier this week.

'When I was really little I had a cap with Pooh on it. The fans just started doing it.'

The adoring crowd at the Gangneung Ice Arena held with hundreds of mini-flags featuring the Japanese rising sun